A British Airways flight was thrown into chaos after 20 passengers were removed before takeoff because extreme heat had made the plane too heavy to take off.
The passengers were forced to leave so extra fuel could be pumped aboard the plane which was leaving Florence's Amerigo Vespucci Airport bound for London City Airport.
As due to the sweltering 35C heat, the BA Embraer ERJ-190 needed more fuel because it had to work harder to reach cruising altitude.
This had made the air less dense and the aircraft required more fuel to do the same job – a necessity that added a significant amount of weight.
This situation was not helped by the short 5,118ft runway at the Florence airport, less than half the length of Gatwick's 10,879ft runway.
